i used to live alone before i knew you
by stars4redvines
Summary: One-shot dedicated to the victims of the Colorado shooting last month. After a shooting Sheldon is brought face to face with his once best friend and trusts her as much as he did before.


**Author's Note:Hi I'm stars4redvines and I'm the one bringing you the crack-friendship of Sheldon x Rachel. It's a one-shot and I'm dedicating it to the victims of the Colorado shooting last month. 12 people lost their lives and many people are injured and still in hospital due to their injuries. I'm setting this story in Season 3 of The Big Bang Theory. I am moving the shooting from Colorado to Pasadena, California for the story. If this offends you, I completely understand. Sheldon and Rachel were childhood friends and stayed friends until Sheldon met Leonard, Howard and Raj. She doubted their friendship with Sheldon and they fought over this. They haven't talked to each other in a long time.I am not great at writing characters as they would act in their respective fandoms, so I apologize for the OOCness of these characters. I hope you enjoy ****_i used to live alone before i knew you_****.**

**Dedicated To:The victims and their families of the Colorado shootings last month. To Jonathon Blunk, Alexander Boik, Jessica Childers, Gordon Cowden, Jessica Ghawi, John Larimer, Matt McQuinn, Micayla Medek, Veronica Moser-Sullivan, Alex Sullivan, Alexander Teves and Rebecca Wingo and their families.**

**Warning:Leonard, Howard, Raj and Penny bashing. Spoilers for The Big Bang Theory. Sorry!**

**Disclaimer:I do not own the worlds of The Big Bang Theory or Glee. I also do not own any characters associated with these amazing fandoms. I do not even own the laptop I'm using to write this story... Oh well. :p**

* * *

Sheldon froze as he saw a man with a gas mask and a shot-gun stand up. He, Raj, Howard and Leonard had come to watch the Dark Knight Rises at the midnight premiere in Pasadena. And now... When the shots rang out, the screams began.

Sheldon jerked out of shock and screamed at the others to duck down and crawl for the doors. Except Leonard wasn't fast enough and Sheldon could see the bullet coming towards him. He pushed Leonard out of the way and felt a burning, shattering, blinding pain in his shoulder. And then the world went black and quiet.

* * *

Sheldon blinked his eyes quickly as he woke up. He was in an immaculate white room with the smell of disinfectant surrounding him. He was in the hospital. Once he realized where he was, he remembered everything. The shot-gun, the screams, the bullet...

As he looked around his room, he saw that his mother and Mee-Maw were both gripping his hands in prayer and had yet to notice he was awake. There were three people sleeping in chairs beside the door.

He recognized the sprawling forms of his twin, Missy, and his older brother, George, but he couldn't identify the third form from how they were sleeping. As if feeling his eyes on her, she lifted her head and met the eyes of her once best friend.

"Sheldon" Rachel whispered, shocked at seeing him awake, "Sheldon!" And then the room erupted into madness with everyone crying and hugging him except for her. He looked at her and croaked out, "Rachel"

She sobbed as if she had been holding it in a long time and collapsed into his side, avoiding his shot arm.

* * *

Everyone had left Rachel and Sheldon alone in his hospital room so they could talk. Rachel was wiping away tears and Sheldon was discreetly blinking away any tears from his eyes.

Sheldon looked at her as she said, "Sheldon, I'm so sorry. I had no right to judge your friendships with Leonard, Howard or Raj. All this time without talking to you and now this shooting has shown me how, I was jealous and thought they were going to repl-"

"You were right." he whispered, watching her reaction. She stared at him, not understanding and he explained, "I went to the Arctic to search for slow-moving monoples and I was allowed to choose my own team. I chose Howard, Leonard and Raj. I believed I had detected a significant monopolar magnetic charge, which validated one of the chief predictions of superstring theory." At Rachel's look of dawning comprehension and disgust, he continued, "I publicly announced I had confirmed string theory and would win a Nobel Prize."

He choked back a sob for his torn dream and continued, "I later learned that the charge was actually static electricity from their can opener. I was forced to retract my claims and I have been discredited."

"Oh Sheldon," Rachel breathed, "But the Nobel Prize is your dream."

"Was." Sheldon replied, watching as his story sunk in, "It was my dream."

Rachel stared at him in shock and sadness and then strode from his room, looking like a woman on a mission.

* * *

Five hours later, Rachel, George and Missy returned from wherever they had disappeared to. They sat down around his bed and looked at one another before turning to face Sheldon. Missy spoke first saying quietly, "Now Shelly, Rachel told us everything."

Sheldon shot Rachel a betrayed look and it was George who stuck up for her, "Shelly, she did the right thing. Me and Missy were gonna beat up the little punks ourselves but she beat us to it. Gave 'em all shiners and she tore 'em a new one over what they did. We let her take on to the blonde tryin' to defend 'em too."

Sheldon gave Rachel a surprised look. She shrugged and said, "Well, I wasn't going to let them get away with what they did to you and your dreams. I remember when you did the same for me." She ignored George's and Missy's shocked faces and continued, "I also went to get your things and inform Leonard that you were moving in with me."

Before he could protest, Rachel explained, "I was recently offered the part of Elphaba in the movie version of Wicked and it's shooting here, so I already had an apartment. It's close to the university so you can walk to work in the mornings. So, George, Missy and I got all your stuff and moved it into my apartment."

At this point, Sheldon gathered Rachel beside him in an awkward hug due to his shoulder. "Thank you." he whispered into her hair. "Thank you."

* * *

As Sheldon and Rachel stepped into the park for the anniversary of the shooting, everyone stopped what they were doing and stared at them. Sheldon looked striking in his dark suit and Rachel further complimented him in her white dress.

A year had passed. A lot had changed in their lives.

* * *

Sheldon had told the University about what had really happened in the Arctic and thus, had cleared his name of a stupid prank done by petty, selfish men. He had gone on to work on the string theory implications of gamma rays from dark matter annihilations and considered a method for optimizing a 500 GeV particle detector to this end.

He had stuck to his schedule and had Pizza Night and New Comic Book Night and so on. He had calmed down about his schedule and germaphobia enough for them to have a cat called Zazzles and an aquarium of fish night-lights. He had nightmares about the shooting constantly but he was going to therapy and slowly recovering.

Rachel had already been famous due to her stint on Broadway and her numerous Tony Awards. Her name was further known due to her Oscar wins for her portrayals of Elphaba in Wicked that year and her previous wins as Wendla in Spring Awakening and Époine in Les Misérables. She had tried to help Sheldon the best she could as he suffered from nightmares.

* * *

Sheldon tensed as he saw Leonard, Howard, Raj and Penny staring at him with hostility. Howard, Leonard and Raj had been fired from the University for what they had done against Sheldon. They had all found jobs, but none were happy about being humiliated as they had been.

At the sight of Penny and the gold ring on her finger, Sheldon sighed. He had hoped she would side with him over the Arctic but she had sided with Leonard. He still loved her however and it made his heart ache.

He felt Rachel squeeze his hand and looking down at her he asked, "What?". She gave him a hug and whispered softly, "You have to let go of the past to live in the present and thrive in the future." With that, she stepped away from him and made her way to the stage that had been set up.

Sheldon closed his eyes as he heard Rachel begin speaking, "We have come here tonight to mourn the loss of 12 people, who were shot last year. This song is dedicated to them and their families and friends. I was lucky enough to rediscover my best friend but other people lost their lives and so we honour them tonight." She picked up a guitar and began singing softly:

_Well I heard there was a secret chord,_

_That David played and it pleased the Lord,_

_But you don't really care for music, do you?_

_Well it goes like this,_

_The fourth, the fifth,_

_The minor fall and the major lift,_

_The baffled king composing,_

_Hallelujah._

_Hallelujah,_

_Hallelujah,_

_Hallelujah,_

_Hallelujah…_

_Your faith was strong but you needed proof,_

_You saw her bathing on the roof,_

_Her beauty and the moon light overthrew you._

_She tied you to her kitchen chair,_

_She broke your throat and she cut your hair,_

_And from your lips she drew the,_

_Hallelujah._

_Hallelujah,_

_Hallelujah,_

_Hallelujah,_

_Hallelujah…_

_Baby I've been here before,_

_I've seen this room and I've walked this floor,_

_I used to live alone before I knew you._

_And I've seen your flag on the marble arch,_

_And love is not a victory march,_

_It's a cold and it's a broken,_

_Hallelujah._

_Hallelujah,_

_Hallelujah,_

_Hallelujah,_

_Hallelujah…_

_Maybe there's a God above,_

_But all I've ever learned from love,_

_Is how to shoot somebody who out drew you._

_And it's not a cry you hear at night,_

_It's not someone who's seen the light,_

_It's a cold and it's a broken,_

_Hallelujah._

_Hallelujah,_

_Hallelujah,_

_Hallelujah,_

_Hallelujah…_

_Hallelujah,_

_Hallelujah,_

_Hallelujah,_

_Hallelujah…_

_Hallelujah,_

_Hallelujah,_

_Hallelujah,_

_Hallelujah…_

**-**_**FIN**_

* * *

**Author's Note:Oh would you look at that. I added unrequited Sheldon x Penny. Oops! I wasn't completely happy with this to be honest, but then again I rarely am when it comes to my own writing. ****Reviews and constructive criticism are welcome and will be given virtual comic books ****while flames will be put out with a fire extinguisher. Thanks for reading.** And thank you to JB who pointed out that Leonard Cohen wrote Hallelujah and not Jeff Buckley.

**Songs used:**

**Hallelujah - Leonard Cohen**

**-stars4redvines**


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